San Pedro de Atacama

Another turbulent flight from Mendoza and I swear I won't fly in the Andes again... well, until tomorrow. I arrive at the Santiago airport and hail an uber. It's $16 instead of the normal $40 taxi. Pro tip: its illegal so they have to pick you up in the express parking lot across the street.

I make it to Rado Boutique Hostel in Bellavista for my first night in a dorm room. The test of a true backpacker. I'm concerned. When I check in, the desk guy says I'll be fine because there's a Japanese woman in my room... I'm confused, but guess he is stereotyping that they're quiet people. Ironically, she's the opposite. Next door, Panko in Patio Bellavista has live music playing so I settle in. Although reading a non-English sushi menu proves difficult, sushi is a welcome respite from my beef and bread diet as of late. Day 19: Fly to Northern Chile I have a few hours in Santiago before I fly to Calama to get to the Atacama Desert. I decide over another breakfast of toast and cereal, Latin Americans are really messing up the best meal of the day. I think I'm going to die from processed flour. I set out to Barrio Lastarria dreaming of eggs. I decide to earn my breakfast and hike up Cerro Santa Lucia. It's a castle in a tiny jungle with an amazing view of the city. This is the hill people should be hiking. Forget Cerro San Cristobal. Santa Lucia is unique and gorgeous. I head back down and find Colmado Coffee to satisfy that craving for huevos.

It's a two hour flight to Calama. I'm exhausted from the constant movement and I ask myself if I'm homesick yet. No. Still no. When we land, there's a lady waiting with my name on a sign. I didn't order a pick up. I find out it was an amigo of my Chilean friend Nico looking out for me. She runs a hostel called Atacama Loft. Im feeling very lucky because it's about 100 miles to San Pedro de Atacama, the driest desert in the world, and I only pay 12,000 pesos ($18). Arriving in town, I check into Hostel Lackuntur. It's an 8 min walk from town and way overpriced, but it's comfortable. I quickly learn cash is king here in Atacama. I go off to wander down the main street, Carocoles, to see if I can arrange some tours. After successfully orienting myself, I stop in for a quick bite for dinner at Lola. The food isn't great, but the music is.

I get ready for stargazing with Space leaving at 8pm. This turns out to be one of the coolest 2 hour experiences of my trip. The sky is so different in the Southern Hemisphere. You can see the Milky Way perfectly. 6,000 stars visible to the naked eye. The southern cross. Castor and Pollux. Jupiter. Shooting stars. The brightest star in the sky: Syrius. My pictures capture none of the beauty. We top off the night with hot chocolate and head home (I get growled at and chased home by a pack of rabid dogs but I try to forget this part). Day 20: Valle de la Luna The next morning I head back into town to book a tour to Uyuni. There are about 80 operators for the Bolivian salt flats, but they are not all created equal. There are a number of questions you need to ask: how many passengers per jeep? Do you outsource to a Bolivian company? Where will we stay the night (should include salt hotel)? What language does the driver speak? What's the safety record? What kind of food is provided? I've done some research on the best companies and know I should pay between 95,000 and 105,000 chillenos which is about $150. The third place I love the most, Lithium Aventura, and I negotiate them down to 105,000 pesos.

Satisfied, I have almuerzo at La Picado Del Indio. This is key to saving money in Latin America. Almuerzo is a set menu of the day which usually includes soup, a main dish, and a small dessert that you can always get from about $3-7. After, I exchange money for Bolivianos (haggling the exchange rate despite the fact I don't know what it should be), and buy supplies for the 3 day trip (toilet paper, snacks, water).

At 3:30, the streets in San Pedro fill with people heading to Valle de la Luna for the sunset tour. I booked through Cosmo Andina (17,500 or $30). I have to admit I'm a bit bored at first. I've been on enough tours that I know all the first picture opportunities are going to be way outdone by the grand finale. I'm not that interested in flora, fauna, or the calcium sulphate in the rocks. We visit Death Valley and run down the sand dunes. Next, we head to Valle de Luna. Unremarkable until the sun starts to set over the salt flats. The colors in the rocks turn pink and contrast beautifully with the sky. It's incredible. We hike up the ridge and sit to watch. After we return to town, I have a delicious lomo (beef) dinner at La Estaka.

Day 21: Sandboard Death Valley I head to sandboarding at 9am. Our guides with Sandboard San Pedro are amazing. One guy has dreads and Mad Max glasses. The other guy has big curly hair and one feather earring. Characters. I'm not the worst boarder, but I'm not great. GoPro footage is hilarious. On one of my wipeouts, I find a Samsung phone buried in the ground that must've been lost months ago... I give it to a guide who I'm sure is going to sell it, but I'm too lazy to do anything about it. It doesnt turn on and I don't have a charger for it. Sorry. I climb back up the dunes huffing and puffing and come up with a business proposal to install a lift to the top... Americanism.

We head back into town and I have lunch with 3 English folk at Vali. I'm excited to join a tour tomorrow and hopefully make some travel companions. I spend the rest of the day reading and writing and planning bolivia for my visa application. I also have my first hostel cooking experience. I can't figure out how to get the stove working for the life of me until I see a lighter on a shelf. I'm either going to blow myself up or this is going to work. I try it. Success. Gas grills for dummies.

I realize I have 20,000 chilleno pesos left ($30) so I walk into town. A quick stop at the artisans market and dinner at Barros and I'm half way through my remaining pesos. I decide to spend the rest on a ridiculous amount of snacks for the trip at the store. I figure since I'm American I should try to win people in my group over with food. I see two guys giggling buying supplies and looking helpless. I wonder if they will be on my tour. Given the number of tourists in town it seems highly unlikely, but I find them amusing.

Au revoir Chile, I'm off to Bolivia.